Biography: Burton French Ellis

Burton French Ellis was born on September 13, 1903 in Troy, Idaho. He graduated with a law degree from the University of Idaho in 1929 and worked until 1942 as a taxation lawyer before volunteering for the U.S. Air Force. From 1943 to 1944 Ellis served in the Far East as an Assistant Staff Judge Advocate. He was transferred to the War Crimes Branch of the U.S. Army in Dachau in 1945. He was chief prosecutor in the Malmedy Trial, which resulted in a broadly supported amnesty campaign in West Germany.

From 1950 to 1953, Ellis served in Korea and investigated war crimes during the Korean War. Appointed Judge Advocate in Honolulu in 1955, he held overall responsibility for military investigations in Hawaii and Southeast Asia. He resigned from service in 1958 and worked as a lawyer in California. He died on December 29, 2000.